Watch Out for Expensive Currency Exchanges
Sunday December 28, 2008
When overseas, it is usually best to get local currency through an ATM with either a bank debit card or credit card. When you start exchanging money in unfamiliar places, it can get ugly. Here's an example: a traveler wrote me recently about his Sunday visit to a bank in Spain, necessitated by a credit card that wasn't working. He exchanged his money for the local currency and paid an 18 percent commission for the privilege! When he questioned the exorbitant charge, he said the man at the other end of the counter shrugged and said that was the standard rate at that bank. You are likely to pay a fee when using an ATM, but it's unlikely to be more than a nominal amount. One caution: always notify your bank and/or credit card company if you plan to withdraw money overseas. For your protection, many of them "red flag" such unusual transactions, rendering your card (at least temporarily) useless. Photo illustration by Bruno Vincent/Getty Images.
Comments
A decade+ ago I was traveling in East Africa, one country (I think Madagascar (or Zanzibar/Tanz-)) only accepted MASTER CARD not VISA @ ATM’s. Wise to check before you go, if one knows where their going—the hint of giving “heads-up” to the carrier IS important as well.
It may also be wise to change unused foreign currency back to USD before returning home. Exchange rates in the US aren’t great and usually have a standard $5 fee.
This man is not telling the truth. Banks in Spain are closed on Sat.and Sundays. He got his exchange in other place than a bank. Banks in all Spain had to charge the commision stated by the governmente and is not 18%.
Interesting…perhaps he thought he was in a bank but stumbled across a place set up to look like a bank. Thanks for the information.
Yeah if you get cash from another country and bring it back to the US don’t expect a full currency refund.